3/15/2007

Looking for a hip, moderately priced restaurant (around the 1000-2000 yen range) with a fusion of Western and Japanese, the atmosphere of a buzzing cafe, house music in the background, and a chance to check your e-mail? Check out the Wired Cafe. Locations include two branches in Shibuya, and Shinjuku (click on the map–also check out the “SHOP TOUR” to get a quick idea of what the atmosphere is like before going).

What’s great about Wired is that it’s a very decent cross between a full-fledged restaurant and a place where you can just grab a cup of coffee, chill, and browse the internet a bit. In other words it’s a nice, trendy spot to grab dinner on a date, and an equally suitable spot for hanging out with your friends in the afternoon or evening over coffee (alcohol also available).

The food menu is an interesting mix of Japanese and Western tastes blending into each other, and I myself was pleasantly surprised by how well they turned out. The beauty of it is that while there’s nothing exotic on the menu, everything’s at least a bit “unorthodox” (i.e. Shrimp & Avocado w/ Tar-Tar Wrapped Sandwich, or SPAM & Egg Pizza), which is great if your in a slight mood for something adventurous, but nothing too far into the wild side. Check it out for yourself.

As is advertised on the website’s frontpage banner, the restaurant’s atmosphere tends to be buzzing with activity and chatter, and as such I would recommend it as a no-go if you’re looking for somewhere more eloquent or relaxing. Also, try arriving a little before lunchtime during the weekend as it tends to fill up really quickly with the younger crowd (20-something and up) and you might be put on a short waiting list. However that might not be such a bad thing at the QFront location, as the Wired Cafe is incorporated right into a bookstore on the 6th floor with plenty of easy chances to kill time looking at something interesting.

My favorite location out of the two locations I have thus far visited among the QFront building in Shibuya and the one in Shinjuku has to be QFront for its convenient location in the heart of Shibuya and it’s incorporation into Tsutaya. The website describes that particular location as a place where you can “relax and enjoy a book, look up movie listings on the internet, meet up with friends or have dinner together, and be able to make use of a variety of ’scenes’”. As a general “chill-out” or dinner spot, I highly recommend the Wired.